Imagine a giant outdoor classroom where farmers and scientists work together to find the best way to grow food without harming nature. They are testing a mix of natural farming tricks to make crops stronger against climate change. The goal is to help farmers make more money by connecting them to better markets with high-quality, eco-friendly produce.
Farmers in Central and Eastern Africa struggle with climate vulnerability and poor market access, making it difficult for companies to source stable, sustainable quantities of key crops.
The project created 8 Living Labs, sustainable business models for five key crops, and a set of practical tools for market access and performance evaluation.
If you are an importer dealing with unstable supply chains in Africa — this project developed sustainable business models that improve the resilience of 20,000 farmers. This ensures a more reliable flow of ethically sourced raw materials for your global customers.
If you are a service provider dealing with a lack of localized farming data — this project developed practical tools and replication guidelines for agroecological practices. You can use these to offer precise, evidence-based advice to growers in the humid tropics.
If you are a retailer dealing with low demand or lack of certified agroecological products — this project developed tools for facilitating access to markets. This helps you source verified sustainable cassava, rice, and maize directly from organized producer groups.
Based on available project data, specific pricing or cost structures for the tools and business models are not mentioned.
The project is testing these methods across 8 Living Labs with over 20,000 farmers, providing a significant base for scaling across the humid tropics of Central and Eastern Africa.
Based on available project data, there is no specific information regarding IP ownership or licensing terms for the co-created business models.
The project includes policy dialogues with governments in DR Congo, Burundi, Cameroon, and Rwanda to ensure the practices align with and shape local regulations.
The project runs from 2023-01-01 to 2026-12-31, meaning the final validated models and tools will be available by the end of 2026.
The consortium is highly diversified with 22 partners across 13 countries. It features a strong mix of operational capacity, with 5 industry partners (23% industry ratio) and 3 SMEs, balanced by 8 research and university entities. This structure suggests a strong bridge between academic research and commercial application, particularly in the African and European markets.
Contact CIRAD EPIC in France for details on the Living Lab results.
Contact us to connect with the 22 partners for sustainable sourcing in Africa.
